The Eight Values of Free Expression

 The Eight Values of Free Expression:        

1. Marketplace of Ideas

2. Participation in Self-Government 

3. Stable Change 

4. Individual Self-Fulfilment   

5. Check on Government Powers 

6. Promote Tolerance 

7. Promote Innovation 

8. Protect Dissent 

Stable Change

I am very passionate about creating peace and keeping it. There is so much anger and hatred that is flooding throughout this country, and it's very heartbreaking to watch. How did we even get to this point? We as the American people, wholeheartedly believe that the only way to get our message across is by creating violence. The First Amendment specifically states that we have the freedom to have opinions and make statements without being punished. So why does it feel like we are moving backward? I don't feel like I can truly say how I am feeling,  or share my thoughts on a certain subject, because I know that I will be judged, shamed, and potentially even canceled for it. 

When peaceful protests like the George Floyd protests, turned violent and mimicked the Civil Rights Movement, when hundreds of individuals gathered together and stormed the Capitol on January 6th, these were acts of anger. The American people were fed up with how the government was acting and they were tired of not being listened to, so they decided to take it upon themselves to do something that would get the attention of the United States government. 

There is a clear difference however between both of these situations, but they share the same underlying motive. The motive is that if the government allows us, to express our emotions on certain events, get angry,  allow us to speak our minds, and then have the opportunity to do something about it. There wouldn't be this much violence circulating throughout the country. The government has no right to act shocked when people create violence and retaliate against them. They had it coming because all we want is for our voices to be heard, for justice to be served and for us to have a reason, any reason to still believe and trust that the government is protecting us and does have our backs fully. 

When George Floyd was brutally murdered, it shocked the country. It angered people because, in terms of racial discrimination, enough was enough. No real change was occurring and it almost felt like we were back in time. Not much was being done, at the same time to bring justice to Floyd's killer. So people used their power and their right to free speech and peacefully protested the answers that the government was refusing to give us. Things however did not stay like that for long, because governmental officials got involved, and tried to stop the protests from happening. Peaceful protests that were well within the constitutional rights of an individual were interrupted and wrongfully so. George Floyd's protests were reasonable and justifiable; the Capitol attack was illegal and not protected by the First Amendment in any way shape or form. So I understand the backlash on that situation because the intention was there but the execution was not protected under the constitution.

I believe that for the sake of this country, the government has to let individuals express their First Amendment rights. They must allow individuals to voice their opinions, state the things that they want to say, have protests, etc. because if we don't the next war that the United States will be involved in, will not be a war with another country. It will be a war with each other. 

Promote Innovation: 

I am the most comfortable when I get to be creative, and I have the opportunity to express myself. I believe that allowing people to not only speak freely but to be creative in a freeing way can allow us to live in a society that is filled with joy and love. It's sad when you are shunned and denied the opportunity to just be who you are, or even have the opportunity to discover what you like and the kind of person that you want to be.  I think that this idea of "who we are" and the people that we want to be starts in the homes and within the communities. If we can't speak freely at home, or if we are not allowed to be creative in any aspect then do we really have freedom? Are we given the tools and the opportunities to become diverse individuals who have the power to change the world? It almost feels as if this value could be the basis for a dystopian movie. Where the government controls what you say, how creative you can be, and what you are allowed to think about. 

People misunderstand the power and the value of small communities.  When communities are filled with hope, acceptance, and openness it allows for more people to not be afraid of who they are. It allows them to gain a new perspective on the world, and it allows them to see that not everyone is out to censor them. People also misunderstand the power that they have within themselves when they become the people that they were meant to be. When you finally come to the realization of who you truly are, that in my opinion is more powerful and will have a more significant effect on society than anything else. And if we are a country that fought for our freedom and created a constitution that is around promoting and ensuring that we are free, why are we so against creativity, and people being themselves? Why are we acting as if we live in a dictatorship?

Individual Self-Fulfillment

I would not have my identity if it weren't for free speech. I think I take for granted the power of freedom.  I can explore and express myself in ways that people in other countries can't. I am blessed with the opportunity to go on a journey of self-discovery and growth and know that I have the First Amendment to thank. The First Amendment does not just promote freedom of speech, it almost promotes individuality and diversity. It does so by allowing us to create our own thoughts, opinions, preferences, and goals all while helping us to be the best version of ourselves. It promotes this idea of identity and who we want to be because in the end the type of people that we become can and will have lasting impacts on the world. So as the First Amendment allows us to be different and actually wants us to be different it is very much working in favor of itself. Think about it, if we have a system that puts the lives and values of its people above everything else, then the very system that molded our lives and the journies that we have gone on, is the system that will we fight hard to protect in the future. The future which may or may not be filled with violence, censorship, and sensitivity to freedom, may come sooner than later at the rate we are going. 

To put it into simpler terms, the First Amendment is not about protecting speech, it's about protecting the person and it's about promoting and creating a safe, pleasant environment for everyone in society. This safe environment will then give individuals the key to discovering who they are without punishment. Once people have gone through their journey of discovery and they have found that they like skydiving but not blueberries then, only then will the government feel as if their job is complete. They have created an entire country of different individual people who are separate in every way possible but can come together. They can come together and advocate for the very Amendment that made them the people that they are today and I think that it was the government's plan all along.